"And Now for a Word" discussion

[ruuger]

This is the discussion post for the episode 2X15, "And Now for a Word". Spoilers for the whole of the series, including the spin-offs and tie-ins, are allowed here so newbies beware.

Summary:
ISN Special Report about a regular day on Babylon 5.

Extra reading:
The article for "And Now for a Word" at Lurker's Guide.

Comments

[nolivingman.livejournal.com]

Some nice Narn/Centauri tension, but overall, I just loathe this episode. Not even Reva Shayne can save us from JMS Making A Statement About The Press. I'm with Delenn in crying. Which I found embarrassing as a viewer, but realistic. She's new to human emotions; they're tough to deal with. And she still has that lame hairdo and it looks bad on TV. I'd cry too.

I find the assertion that 250,000 humans died during the Earth-Minbari war to be an interesting fact. I guess we can make the math work if we assume small outposts were taken, smaller ships, etc., but it's weird how over-the-top the reactions in In the Beginning (which I adore) are in comparison to that number. I'm not prepared to say continuity problem, but I would need some talking into it.

[lizbee.livejournal.com]

Which I found embarrassing as a viewer, but realistic. She's new to human emotions; they're tough to deal with. And she still has that lame hairdo and it looks bad on TV. I'd cry too.

That, and over the season she's been kicked out of the Grey Council and lost most of her allies, regarded as an outcast by her own people and as a freak (at best) by humans. And hormonally, she's probably at a stage equivalent to that of a fourteen-year-old girl. Not to mention that she seemed to have a number of friends in season one, most of whom have vanished (except for Draal) now. She's basically down to spending her time with Lennier and Sheridan, and, um, I'd cry, too.

(This is how I justify a scene that doesn't quite work for me at all. At first I thought she was bunging it on, in the manner of Donna Noble at her abortive wedding reception, but that's not Delenn's style. And she still seems blotchy and distressed in the next scene. I don't know. I have trouble believing that she wouldn't have considered the human reception before, and I can't quite see the journalist as a Big Bad for asking about it.)

[traviswells.livejournal.com]

I guess the reaction in In The Beginning makes sense if you assume that for every output the Minbari were attacking, the civilians were being evacuated, leaving just the military there to take on the Minbari.

And if all of those were getting slaughtered, you can see how freaked out Earth would be as refugees keep coming in and no warships are coming back. And when all your colonies are gone, the Minbari are on the way to Earth.

Even if a relatively small number of people have died, if that composes 90% of your military and all your civilians are at the next target, that'd explain a lot of the reaction.

[4thofeleven.livejournal.com]

Yeah, the Minbari war causualty figure seemed very low to me, especially since it is implied elsewhere that entire colonies were destroyed.

Anyone know how big the crew of an Earth Alliance cruiser is meant to be?

[kathrid.livejournal.com]

I believe the Hyperion (the most common ship at the time) had a crew of about 100 to 120.

About the casualty numbers - as far as I thought the colonies, even major ones, only have a population roughly 1 or 2 million at the time of the show. Fifteen years earlier they'd be smaller still. As such 250,000 may well have comprised a large proportion of Earths spaceborn population. Plus I always thought Earths military was almost wiped out during the war. More like 98% casualties than 90%.